The campaigning mother of a boy killed at the Trafford Centre by a falling railing made a passionate plea for national improvements to health and safety standards.
Addressing a rally in Manchester, Dawn Adams said corporate health and safety failings would cost more lives.
Her son Samuel died aged six in the horror accident shortly after the mall opened in 1998. He suffered horrific injuries when an 18-stone balustrade fell on him as he played with other children on a stage. Trafford centre bosses later admitted that adequate safety measures were not in place at the time and were fined £100,000.
Mrs Adams, from Altrincham, has campaigned tirelessly for health and safety reform since Samuel’s death and is a founding member of pressure group Families Against Corporate Killers.
Mrs Adams addressed crowds at Albert Square in Manchester on International Workers’ Memorial Day. She said: “People die every day but you do not hear about it. My son is not with us today because of health and safety failings. I want the country to take notice and make improvements.”
Relatives and friends of people killed at work gathered to call for improvements. Wreaths and flowers were laid at the foot of the Albert Memorial in their memory and a minute’s silence was observed.
Linzi Herbertson, 38, whose husband Andrew died aged 29 in 1998 after he fell from scaffolding, also spoke. Mrs Herbertson, from nearby Failsworth, said: “He went up there to do a job he was asked to do. A week later I had to switch his life-support machine off. If people ignore health and safety there’ll be more deaths.”
Other speakers included members of the Greater Manchester Asbestos Victim Support Unit and Kevin Brown, regional secretary of the Fire Brigades Union.
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I hope the "health and safety gone mad" brigade take note of this article. There's a reason we have health and safety inspectors, speed cameras and the like - it's because people have died before their time from avoidable accidents.
Wake up and smell the roses you people...Three years ago I suffered a severe brain injury in a work related accident...I have had My entire life stolen from me, and am now a prisoner in my home ....You can never know what it is like ...to wish that you were dead because you cant do any of the things you used to do....Changes at the workplace need to happen now ..Stop these stupid accidents ...Save Lives..Please..
Funny how politicians were so quick to bring corporate manslaughter back to the statute book, following the Bowbelle tragedy if memory serves, however they've not been quite so quick to extend that to the public sector which continually breaks health & safety and kills with impunity. A good reason for further privatisation perhaps.
Health & Safety gone mad doesn't refer to incidents like this where there's an obvious danger of death, it refers to kids not allowed skipping ropes in case they trip, or not allowed conkers without safety glasses & hard hats! Too much attention paid to stupid trivial issues means the important ones are skimped on or missed altogether.